


There's Good In You

by areyoucoldflash (hellosterek)



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Abuse, Derogatory Language, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-23
Updated: 2016-01-23
Packaged: 2018-05-15 17:24:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5793388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellosterek/pseuds/areyoucoldflash
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The pile of pain no one asked for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	There's Good In You

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, I was reading one of [Ky's fics](http://archiveofourown.org/users/writerdragonfly/pseuds/writerdragonfly) and this just sorta came to me and it hurt so much that I had to write it.
> 
> I also wrote this on my phone at 4am so I apologize for any errors. I will read through it again when I'm more awake and fix anything I missed.
> 
> As a warning, there's some flashbacks of abuse and Lewis Snart being a jerk. Enjoy! :p

Barry watched in horror as the woman stood over Len, her long nails stabbing further into his chest as Len's bright blue eyes stared into hers. He was gasping and then his eyes were rolling back, his body collapsing into the ground and then convulsing.

"Len!" Barry shouted, surging forward only to receive a blow to the chest. He flew backwards and landed in a heap on the ground, the wind knocked out of him.

Len's body continued to convulse on the ground, a hot pain shooting through his veins and pressing against his head. He couldn't see anything but darkness, could taste nothing but blood.

He gasped and scooted away, cowering as a bottle shattered against the wall, beer spilling over his head.

"Lousy, no good fucking half-breed!"

Len felt the tears on his face and quickly wiped them away, knowing that if he showed weakness it would only make things worse.

A blow from Lewis's steel-toed boot landed to his side and he tried not to whimper as he felt something crack. He curled in on himself, waiting for it to end.

"You take after that goddamn negro! It's no fucking wonder she OD'd after having a little bastard like you!"

Len heard the shattering of another bottle, this time near his leg, and scooted further away. But he wasn't quick enough. He wasn't small enough. He wasn't strong enough.

Lewis grabbed a hold of his shirt collar and pulled him up off the floor, slamming him back against the wall. "Look at me when I'm talking to you, boy!"

His father's breath smelled like stale beer and Len swallowed hard, locking his jaw as he opened his eyes to see the man in front of him, his eyes wild and his hair a mess. It really was no wonder Len's mother had left the way she had, when she had someone like this to deal with? But Len didn't say that, he couldn't. Not when Lisa was in the other room, hiding out of the line of fire. Not when Lisa needed him to take the blows for her.

Len felt more tears break through and held his breath as Lewis watched them slide down his cheek.

"You little pansy," Lewis laughed, shaking his head as he spat the words. "The fuck did I tell you about crying?!"

Len felt a sharp stab to his stomach and cried out in pain, glancing down to see half of the broken beer bottle being twisted into his gut. His breath caught and he grasped at his father's wrists, looking up at him with wide-eyed shock.

"Len!"

Len heard the scream, but wasn't sure where it was coming from. He just knew that they needed to stay away.

~*~

When Len came to he was in an unfamiliar room, surrounded by medical supplies and hooked up to an IV. He sat up quickly, wincing at the pain in his ribs, and ripped off the IV. He slipped out of the bed with every intention to leave when Barry appeared in the doorway.

Len stopped short, raising an eyebrow. After a moment, it clicked that he was at STAR labs, not a hospital. That was good...but still not ideal. "Scarlet..."

Barry was watching him carefully, examining each broken movement and poorly hidden wince as the man moved. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the door frame. "You almost died, Len."

Len faltered at the use of his first name, not used to having anyone from Team Flash call him anything other than Snart, Cold, or Public Enemy #1.

He frowned before his usual smirk tugged at his lips. He carefully maneuvered toward Barry, careful not to jostle his ribs or move in a way that would stretch the skin of his chest too much. Fuck, the bitch had long nails -- or, perhaps it would be more accurate to call them claws.

"Hm," he hummed as he approached Barry, the kid's gaze moving to his bandaged chest before returning to his face. "Was the Flash worried about me?"

Barry scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You, Snart? No."

His smirk widened. He was glad they had gotten back into last name territory. "Good," he murmured. "Wouldn't want word to get out that the Flash was going soft, now would we?"

"I'd rather be soft than a killer," Barry returned, and ah, Len got it now.

"Is that why you saved me, Barry?" he drawled, emphasizing the first name as he took a deliberate step forward. "Trying to be the hero? My hero?"

"I saved you because you don't deserve to die, Snart," Barry snapped, eyes darkening in frustration. He was always so easily riled. Had such a short fuse.

But his statement surprised Len, if only a fraction. His smirk turned sour. "It's cute that you think I'm worth saving, but you're wasting your time, Flash."

Barry was silent for a moment, his gaze unsettlingly penetrating as he stared at Len, but Len didn't back down -- could never back down from a challenge.

"Then it's a good thing I decide what I waste my time on," Barry said eventually, and Len didn't really know what to say to that. Hadn't been expecting that sort of response. He'd half expected Barry to agree that he was a waste of time. Part of him had almost wanted Barry to say it, to remind him of all the things Lewis Snart had taught him as a kid. But Barry wasn't Lewis, nor was he often dishonest.

Len didn't really know what to do with Barry's declaration, so instead he found his shirt and struggled into it, his expression carefully blank even as his ribs smarted at the movement. Because that was what Len had learned about weakness. To be careful not to show it.

"You're a good kid, Barry," Len muttered, peeking at the kid over his shoulder as he gathered up his parka and his cold gun, double checking that all the parts were still there.

Barry was still watching him, and if he didn't stop soon Len was going to say something stupid.

"There's good in you too, Len."

The words hung in the air and Len stood, staring down at his gun as he reassembled it. When he glanced over his shoulder again, the kid was already gone, and Len didn't know quite how to feel about that. About any of this.

He wasn't sure if what Barry said was true -- he was half convinced that the kid's intuition was seriously misguided (he had, after all, trusted Wells) -- but he did know that he wasn't like his dad. He wasn't like his mother either. He wasn't a coward or a ruthless killer. He was just a criminal.

A criminal with an increasing weakness for a Mr. Barry Allen.

Swearing under his breath, Len stormed through the cortex, ignoring the stunned looks of both Cisco and Caitlin as he passed through, entirely too familiar with his way around the place. He needed to stop winding up at STAR labs.

He was convinced they were doing something to his brain.


End file.
